{"nrhp_refnum":"11000834","name":"Freeman Store","other_names":["Lydecker Store, Freeman House, Freeman Store &amp","Museum","VDHR No. 153-0002"],"category":"building","location":{"address":"131 Church St. NE.","address_restricted":false,"city":"Vienna","county":"Fairfax (city and county)","state":"VA","lat":38.90334231700007,"lon":-77.26509517499994,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"2012-05-15","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Commerce","Military","Politics/Government"],"significance_levels":["local"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"A two-story, five-bay frame combined store and residence at 131 Church Street NE in Vienna, Fairfax County, Virginia, built in 1859 for Abram Lydecker, a merchant from New Jersey.","why_significant":"The building was constructed beside the new Alexandria, Loudoun & Hampshire Railroad and served as a general store, post office and hotel in the village then called Ayr Hill. During the Civil War it was used by Union forces, including as a brigade hospital for cavalry, and was photographed by Army photographers. It later housed the Freeman family's business and insurance office and was rehabilitated in the 1970s as a museum.","narrative":"Built in 1859 at the corner of Church Street and the railroad line in Vienna, Virginia, this two-story frame building combined a store and a family home. Abram Lydecker, a merchant who moved from New Jersey, put it up one year after the railroad reached the village. It was originally seven bays wide, but a two-bay section at the north end was moved in the late 1890s, leaving five bays under a side-gabled roof with weatherboard siding, a stone foundation and six-over-six windows. The building served as a general store, post office and hotel. During the Civil War, Union troops occupied the village, and photographs show soldiers on its porch; it also served as a brigade hospital for cavalry. Later the Freeman family used it as a home and insurance office. The Town of Vienna bought it in 1969 and rehabilitated it in 1975-77. It now operates as a museum and country store, open to the public.","period_of_significance":null,"architect_builder":null,"architectural_style":"Other: Mid 19th Century Commercial","criteria":[],"status_note":"Restored as a country/general store and museum open to the public, owned by the Town of Vienna and run by volunteers of Historic Vienna, Inc.; it was vacated in 1955 and rehabilitated in 1975-77.","vacant_flag":false,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:52:03.14374-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/opastorage/live/37/6805/41680537/content/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_VA/11000834.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/11000834/b016b07ef1-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/11000834/b016b07ef1-1600.webp","licence":"CC BY-SA 3.0","author":"JERRYE &amp; ROY KLOTZ MD","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:FREEMAN_STORE.jpg\" rel=\"noopener\">JERRYE &amp;amp; ROY KLOTZ MD</a>, <a href=\"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0\" rel=\"license noopener\">CC BY-SA 3.0</a>, via Wikimedia Commons","source_page":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:FREEMAN_STORE.jpg"},"district":null,"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/41680537","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Freeman_Store_and_Museum_(Vienna,_Virginia)","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q5501033"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/virginia/fairfax/freeman-store-11000834/"}